Helphire To Buy New Law For £43m

Accident management services firm Helphire has announced that they are set to purchase New Law, a group of personal injury services firms, for a total of £43m. The fee will be made up of an initial £24.5m in cash, additional milestone payments of £10.5m, and the transfer of debt and shareholder loans to the tune of £8.2m. The deal takes advantage of new Alternative Business Structure rules that enable non-legal firms and partners to buy and manage legal firms.

Helphire is an accident management services firm. They work in conjunction with motor insurers to provide not at fault motorists with a vehicle while they wait for the return of their own car. They employ more than 1,200 people and have a fleet of more than 6,000 vehicles. The company released new shares in December of last year, and raised a total of £60m. It is believed that this money is being used to fund the purchase of New Law.

New Law is a legal firm that deals with a wide variety of legal cases, including extensive personal injury services. The firm was established in 2004 and has quickly grown to become a well-known and highly-respected legal firm within the sector. The purchase has only been made possible because of the recent introduction of the Alternative Business Structure, or ABS.

Previously, it would not have been possible for a non-legal firm like Helphire to purchase a firm of solicitors. However, new rules introduced by the government in 2007 but the Act did not come into force until October 2011. It enables non-legal firms to own and manage a share of legal companies, and it means that Helphire are now able to purchase New Law, a company with whom they have dealt with extensive in the past few years.

Helphire is valued at just under £200m, and this represents a major acquisition for the group. It will enable the accident services firm to be able to provide legal services to its clients as well, showing one of the ways that an ABS can expand and broaden the range of services that both parties offer.

General PI NewsFeb 12th, 20140 comments